The Board of Directors approved a number of changes to the Permanent Disability Evaluation Schedule ("PDES") and associated policies contained in Chapter 6, Permanent Disability Awards, of the Rehabilitation Services and Claims Manual, Volume I and II.

The major changes to the PDES include the following:

changes to the percentages of disability for the partial amputation of the digits of the hand and the reduction in the number of hand charts from 12 to 5 charts;

changes to the spine to include thoracic spine rotation; and

changes to increase the percentage of disability for limited pronation movement (3% to 6% of total disability) and a decrease in the percentage for supination movement (5% to 4%).

The effective date of these changes is August 1, 2003. The changes apply to all section 23(1) assessments and reassessments undertaken with reference to the Permanent Disability Evaluation Schedule on or after August 1, 2003. The revisions to the Rehabilitation Services and Claims Manual to reflect these changes will be distributed shortly.